UPPU URUNDAI AND A BREAK

UPPU URUNDAI AND A BREAK

I made uppu urundai last Wednesday, but I didn’t have time to post the recipe until now. We are shifting to another apartment next Friday and we were quite busy last week looking for apartments and finally there was one, which both of us liked. Dear friends, I am taking a break from blogging for the next few weeks until we settle down. See you all in my new kitchen :). Coming to the recipe, uppu urundai in Tamil literally means “salt ball”. This is an ideal evening snack and it is not deep-fried. It can be had by itself but I love having these with coconut chutney. My MIL makes this an evening snack very often. Whenever she grinds the batter for idlis and dosas, she takes some of the rice batter and makes uppu urundai out of the batter. I find this method very easy. Here, I have used brown rice instead of regular rice.

INGREDIENTS:
Brown rice, 1 cup.
Mustard seeds. ¼ teaspoon.
Red chilies, 2.
Channa dhal, 1 tablespoon.
Broken cashews, 1 tablespoon.
Salt as per taste.
Chopped cilantro, ¼ cup.
Curry leaves, 1 sprig.

PREPARATION:
Wash the rice and soak it for 3-4 hours. Grind the rice along with some salt until its smooth. I used a blender for grinding. Heat a pan with some oil. When the oil is hot enough, add the mustard seeds and let it splutter. Then add the broken red chilies, channa dhal, cashews and fry for a few seconds until everything is brown. Then add the chopped cilantro and curry leaves and the ground rice batter and mix well. Keep mixing under medium flame until the batter starts to thicken and forms into a large dough. It should be firm enough to make small balls out of it. To test the dough, take a pinch of the dough and roll it. The ball will be formed very easily if the consistency is right. Make similar balls from the dough. I have formed small bite-sized balls, so they can easily had with a fork. Then steam the balls for 15 minutes. I used an idli cooker to steam them by arranging them on the idli plates and then steaming them. Serve them with coconut chutney or tomato chutney.

KATHRIKAI MURUNGAKAI PORIYAL (EGGPLANT AND DRUMSTICK CURRY)

KATHRIKAI MURUNGAKAI PORIYAL (EGGPLANT AND DRUMSTICK CURRY)

This is my mom’s favorite poriyal. She makes this often. I never liked this poriyal that much before I got marriage. These days, I am crazy about eggplants and it has been one of my favorite veggies ever since. There are different variations to this poriyal. My mil adds tomato to this poriyal and sometimes my mom adds a potato cut into small cubes and then tops it off with grated coconut. It tastes great both ways. I make it with a slight twist by adding a teaspoon of sambar powder.

This is my entry for Fall in love with Brinjal event hosted by Sanghi from http://www.sanghi-tastybites.blogspot.com/

INGREDIENTS:
Eggplants, medium-sized, 3. If Japanese eggplants are used, only one is required.
Drumsticks, 2. (choose drumsticks with medium to thin stalks). Precut frozen drumsticks are available in regular Indian stores.
Small onions, 2.
Mustard seeds, ¼ teaspoon.
Ginger-garlic paste, 1 teaspoon.
Chili powder, 1 teaspoon.
Coriander powder, 2 teaspoons.
Sambar powder, 1 teaspoon (optional).
Salt as per taste.
Curry leaves and cilantro for garnishing.

PREPARATION:
Dice the onion finely. Cut the drumsticks into long thin pieces. If a thick drumsticks are used, peel the other skin. Cut the eggplant into small pieces and put them in cold water to prevent them from blackening. Heat a pan with some oil. When the oil turns hot enough, add the mustard seeds and let it splutter. Then add the diced onions and sauté for a few minutes until the onions turn brown. Then add the drumsticks, along with the powders, ginger-garlic paste, and salt as per taste. Add enough water just to cover the drumstick and cook closed under medium flame for 10 minutes until the drumsticks are well cooked. Then add the chopped eggplant pieces and mix well. Cook closed under low-to-medium flame until the eggplants are tender and the curry is dry. Switch off the stove, garnish the dish with curry leaves and cilantro and serve hot with rice or chapathis.

Variation: The drumsticks can be cooked in microwave and then added along with eggplants to reduce cooking time.

MINT AND CILANTRO CHUTNEY – A DIFFERENT METHOD

MINT AND CILANTRO CHUTNEY – A DIFFERENT METHOD
This chutney recipe was a sudden idea with the change of plans for dinner last week. I was about the start preparing regular mint and cilantro chutney with idlis one evening when my hubby said that he didn’t want coconut in the chutney. I have never prepared mint chutney without cilantro and started to wonder whether it would be creamy without adding coconut. Then I got this idea of adding walnuts to the chutney and it did turn out pretty tasty. I added some onions to the chutney, which is variation from my regular. It was indeed creamy and healthy. We liked it with idlis. This goes well with chapathis also.

INGREDIENTS:
Mint and cilantro, 1 big bunch of each.
Red onion, small, 1.
Green chilies, 2-3.
Ginger, 1 small piece.
Tamarind, 1 small lemon-sized ball.
Chopped walnuts, 2 tablespoons.
Mustard seeds, ¼ teaspoon.
Salt as per taste.

PREPARATION:
Extract thick juice from the tamarind and keep aside. Remove the leaves of the mint and cilantro and wash them well. Dice the onion finely and slit the chilies into 2. Chop the ginger into small pieces. Heat a pan with a teaspoon of oil. When the oil turns hot, add the chopped onion and keep sautéing it until it is tender. Then add the chilies, ginger pieces, and the mint and cilantro leaves and sauté for a few more minutes until the leaves have wilted. Switch off the stove and let it cool. Once the mixture is cooled, add the contents to a blender along with the tamarind juice, chopped walnuts, and salt as per taste and blend it into a smooth paste. Transfer the chutney into a bowl. Heat a small pan with a teaspoon of oil. When the oil turns hot, add the mustard seeds and let it splutter. Pour the hot oil over the chutney, mix well, and serve with idlis, dosas, and rotis.

Variation: The tamarind juice can be substitued with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice.

FRIED TOFU PATTIES

FRIED TOFU PATTIES
This is yet another great snack idea for tofu lovers like me. This fried tofu was crispy on the outside and soft inside with a delicate flavor of soy sauce going throughout. Here I have coated the tofu lightly with breadcrumbs. If needed, marinated tofu can also be used here and the tofu can be thickly coated with breadcrumbs.

INGREDIENTS:
Extra firm tofu, 1 packet.
Egg whites, ½ cup.
Breadcrumbs, 1 cup.
Soy sauce, ½ teaspoon.
Chili powder, ¼ teaspoon, (optional).
Salt as per taste.
Oil for shallow frying.

PREPARATION:
Cut the tofu in big half-inch thick slices. Remove the excess moisture from the slices by patting them dry with paper towels. Beat the egg whites, soy sauce, chili powder, and salt together. Heat around 3/4th cup of oil in a pan. Meanwhile create a work station with the breadcrumbs on a plate first, egg whites next to that, and the tofu adjacent to the egg whites. Dip the tofu slices in the egg whites and then coat them with the bread crumbs and shallow fry the tofu slices in hot oil for a few minutes each side until they are golden-brown. Serve hot with ketchup or soy sauce.

ANGEL HAIR PASTA UPMA

ANGEL HAIR PASTA UPMA
This recipe idea is from my hubby. I bought a pack of Angel hair pasta recently made a regular pasta dish the next day. My hubby said that it tasted like vermicelli and why don’t we try making semiya upma with it. I prepared upma with this pasta that week. He liked this upma so much that I made it again for dinner the very same week. This upma goes well with coconut chutney although my favorite combination is with meen kuzumbu or fish gravy.

INGREDIENTS:
Whole wheat Angel hair pasta, 6 ounces.
Onion, medium-sized, 1.
Green chilies, small, 2.
Ginger-garlic paste, 1 tsp, (optional).
Salt as per taste.
Mustard seeds. ½ teaspoon.
Chopped cashews, 1 tablespoon.
Curry leaves, 1 twig.
Chopped cilantro 2 tablespoons.

PREPARATION:
Cook the pasta as per the package instructions and drain the water. The pasta should not be overcooked. Dice the onion finely and split the green chilies into two. Heat some oil in a pan and when the oil is hot enough, add the mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds start to splutter, add the cashews and fry for a few seconds until the cashews turn brown. Then add the chopped onions and green chilies along with ginger garlic paste and salt and sauté for a few minutes until everything is tender. Switch off the stove and add the pasta and mix everything well breaking the pasta into small pieces while mixing. Garnish with curry leaves and cilantro and serve hot with coconut chutney or pickle.

EASY CHICKEN KOZUMBU OR GRAVY

EASY CHICKEN KOZUMBU OR GRAVY
This is my MIL’s recipe. This is a Sunday breakfast special at my in-laws place. We usually have this as a side dish for idlis or dosas. This can be had a side with rice and rotis too but this dish is super spicy. The spice level can be adjusted according to personal preferences. We usually add a lot of heat to non-vegetarian dishes. The chicken can also be substituted with lamb but the cooking time for lamb should be increased accordingly. The time taken to cook this dish is usually 20-25 minutes.

INGREDIENTS:
Chicken, 1 lb.
Red onions, medium-sized 4.
Roma tomatoes, medium-sized, 3.
Ginger-garlic paste, 1 teaspoon.
Turmeric powder, ¼ teaspoon.
Chili powder, 4 teaspoons.
Coriander powder, 4 teaspoons.
Ground black pepper, 1 teaspoon.
Garam masala or chicken masala (optional), 1 teaspoon.
Curry leaves, 1 spring.
Chopped cilantro, ½ cup.
Salt as per taste.
Thalipu vadakam (optional), 1/4 teaspoon.

PREPARATION:
Clean the chicken and cut it into bite-size pieces. Dice the onions and tomatoes finely. Take a pressure cooker or pressure pan and add the chicken pieces, diced tomatoes, onions, chili powder, coriander powder, garam masala, turmeric powder, ginger-garlic paste and salt and mix everything once. Pour water in the cooker just enough the cover the chicken. Cook the chicken for up to 3-4 whistles and switch off the stove to let the pressure down. Heat another pan with a teaspoon of oil. Add the vadakam and let it fry for a few seconds. Then add the cooked chicken gravy along with ground pepper, curry leaves, and cilantro and let it cook for 5 more minutes until the desired consistency is reached. Serve hot with rice, idlis, dosas, or breads.

NOTE: Thalipu vadakam is a mixture of fenugreek seeds, cumin, mustard seeds mixed with dried pearl onions and garlic. We usually add it as a seasoning for gravies like sambar, rasam etc. Another seasoning method used by my MIL is that she fries a teaspoon of very finely chopped onions until they are brown and adds it on top of the gravy. This also gives a good flavor to the dish.

SOY GRANULES STUFFED BUNS

SOY GRANULES STUFFED BUNS

Ever since I saw Usha’s oats pav bread, I really got hooked on to her recipe. This is the second time I made them and I tried to add stuffing to the buns instead of having of them as pav. Thanks a lot Usha for this amazing bread. The stuffing I have used here is a side dish I made that day for our lunch. I stuffed the leftovers in the buns and voila..a tasty evening snack to go with tea. I am not posting the recipe for the bread since it is not my recipe. The only change I made in her recipe was that I used whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour, still the texture of the bread was not so dense compared to regular whole wheat bread. For the oats pav recipe, please click here:

www.veginspirations.blogspot.com/2009/06/oat-pav-bread.html

INGREDIENTS FOR THE STUFFING:

1. Soya nuggets or granules around 1 cup.
2. Onions, large-1.
3. Ginger-garlic paste- 1 teaspoon.
4. Chili powder.
5. Fennel seeds-1 teaspoon.
6. Garam masala (optional, tastes good even without garam masala).
7. Salt, as per taste.

METHOD:

For the bread, mix the dough and let it rise for an hour. Take a cup of soy nuggets and put them in boiling water for 2 minutes until the nuggets are puffed up. Let the, sit for 5 minutes, then rinse them well, drain them, and cut into very fine pieces or they can be minced well using a blender. Take care not to make them into a paste, just one or two pulses in the blender will be fine. Chop the onions into small pieces. Heat a pan and add 1 tablespoon of oil. Add the fennel seeds and let them fry for a few seconds, then add the onions and sauté for a few minutes until the onions are caramelized. Add a teaspoon of ginger-garlic paste and sauté for a minute. Then add a tablespoon of chili powder, garam masala, and required salt and fry for everything for a minute on a low flame. Add around 3 tablespoons of water and add the soy granules and cook them closed on low flame around 5-8 minutes until they turn dry. Turn off the heat, add cilantro and let it cool.

After an hour, take the dough, make small balls of dough and flatten it very slightly in the palm. Add 1 to 1-1/2 teaspoons of stuffing in the middle of the flattened dough and fold the dough gently over the stuffing. Smooth the edges into a ball and make similar balls from the rest of the dough. Arrange them on a baking sheet sprayed with nonstick cooking oil. They can be arranged closely or apart. Bake them at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Remove the buns from the oven, let it cool, and enjoy.